Atlantic bocage, Brittany, France
Source: redrawn from J Meeus
Human influence controls the degree of enclosure or openness of the landscape. The landscapes in Europe vary from enclosed (bocages or hedges) to open landscapes (openfields). In the western parts of Europe, Atlantic and continental climatic influences, a high population density and a dispersed settlement pattern render the almost entirely human-made landscapes subject to swift changes in time and space. In the French language the word 'bocage' refers both to the hedge itself and to a landscape consisting of hedges. The 'bocage' landscape of Brittany, central England and Ireland, with some 'offshoots' in Scandinavia, is the classic example of an enclosed agricultural landscape with a long history. Mixed cultivation has been pursued for many generations, with both agriculture and cattle farming side by side. Bocage landscapes usually have a slightly rolling landform, and are found mainly in maritime climates. Soil texture is usually sandy, loamy to clayey. Being a small-scale, enclosed landscape, the bocage offers much variation in biotopes, with habitats for birds, small mammals, amphibians, reptiles and butterflies. There is a close infrastructure network, and small plots, with some farmhouses surrounded by hedges or low walls. Plot fragmentation makes the majority of bocage landscapes increasingly less suitable for arable farming, contributing to the rise in popularity of cattle farming in these areas. In Ireland, for example, the bocage landscape with its patterns of hedges suits to the intensification of cattle farming.
In the French language the word 'bocage' refers both to the hedge itself and to a landscape consisting of hedges. The 'bocage' landscape of Brittany, central England and Ireland, with some 'offshoots' in Scandinavia, is the classic example of an enclosed agricultural landscape with a long history. Mixed cultivation has been pursued for many generations, with both agriculture and cattle farming side by side. Bocage landscapes usually have a slightly rolling landform, and are found mainly in maritime climates. Soil texture is usually sandy, loamy to clayey. Being a small-scale, enclosed landscape, the bocage offers much variation in biotopes, with habitats for birds, small mammals, amphibians, reptiles and butterflies. There is a close infrastructure network, and small plots, with some farmhouses surrounded by hedges or low walls. Plot fragmentation makes the majority of bocage landscapes increasingly less suitable for arable farming, contributing to the rise in popularity of cattle farming in these areas. In Ireland, for example, the bocage landscape with its patterns of hedges suits to the intensification of cattle farming.